Earth Trojan Asteroid
Earth trojans are asteroids that orbit the Sun a similar orbital path as that of Earth in the vicinity of the Earth–Sun Lagrangian points L4 (leading 60°) and L5 (trailing 60°). They are named after the trojan asteroids that are associated with the analogous Lagrangian points of Jupiter.
Their location in the sky as observed from Earth's surface would average about 60° east or west of the Sun. Because people tend to search for asteroids at much greater elongations, few searches have been done in these locations.
The 300-meter-diameter asteroid 2010 TK7 has been determined to be associated with the Earth L4 Lagrangian point, leading Earth's orbit, by Martin Connors and colleagues of Athabasca University using the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) satellite. It is the first confirmed Earth trojan.
Read more about Earth Trojan Asteroid: List, Significance, Other Companions of Earth
Famous quotes containing the words earth and/or trojan:
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“Motherhood is the strangest thing, it can be like being one’s own Trojan horse.”
—Rebecca West (1892–1983)